Simon & Garfunkel once mused that “It’s all happening at the zoo.” The folk duo was onto something. There’s just something so adorable about zoo animals. Thanks to social media, a whole new audience can appreciate this cuteness. You no longer need to travel to the zoo and can fall in love with a curated feed of animal shenanigans.
Here are 10 zoo animals that have gained internet fame for being their silly selves. Hippopotamuses, penguins, polar bears, and more are on this list. The natural world has so much to marvel over.
Moo Deng
Moo Deng is a pygmy hippopotamus who lives at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chon Buri, Thailand. This feisty bundle of energy was born in July of 2024. Her name literally translates to “bouncy pork.” She achieved internet fame by biting her keeper with her gummy mouth, loving drinking from a hose, and avoiding bath time.
Pygmy hippopotamuses are endangered, so Moo Deng is bringing much-needed attention to their plight. Only about 2,500 adults of her kind exist today. She has also greatly increased attendance at the zoo, causing officials to create new rules for her safety.
Pesto
Pesto, a baby king penguin, lives at the Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium in Australia. His big fluffy stature has grabbed the attention of the world. He is 9 months old and already is bigger than his parents, Tango and Hudson.
Pesto weighs 22.5 kg and is 90 cm tall. To put that in perspective, the average adult king penguin ranges between 70 and 100 cm tall and weighs between 14 kg to 16 kg.
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Lin Bing
China tightly controls the panda, one of the country’s national treasures. This makes them special and rare to see in zoos outside of their native country. Lin Bing, a giant panda, lives at the Chiang Mai Zoo in Thailand. She had famous parents as well. Lin Hui and Chuang Chuang were animal stars in their own right. When people found out they had a baby, they were so excited.
The zoo spent almost $2 million to update its enclosure so they could keep the family of three together. Lin Hui and Chuang Chuang have since died, and Lin is a mom herself.
Kipekee
The world was captivated on July 31, 2023, when a spotless baby reticulated giraffe was born at the Brights Zoo in Tennessee. The zoo held a vote on what to name her, and Kipekee was the winning moniker. It is Swahili for unique. Experts in the field believe no other solid-color reticulated giraffe is alive in the world. Kipekee, who draws visitors to the zoo just to see her, definitely lives up to her name.
Joey
Joey, a baby sea otter, had a rough start in life. He was found near Vancouver Island in Canada on July 3, 2020, mourning the loss of his mother. Rescuers saved him and provided around-the-clock care for the tiny creature. They groomed him, fed him every couple of hours, and even taught him how to swim.
He gave the world something cute to focus on during the pandemic. He now lives at the Vancouver Aquarium.
Winter
Winter, a bottlenose dolphin, became a movie star. She was caught in a crab trap line when she was just 2 months old. Her rescuers at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium tried to save her tail but much of it was lost because of necrosis. This resilient porpoise didn’t let that stop her from swimming. She learned to move her remaining tail side to side instead of up and down.
Hanger Clinic made her a prosthetic tail to help her out even more. Her amazing story was told in the 2011 and 2014 films Dolphin Tale and Dolphin Tale 2, where she played herself. Winter died at the age of 16 in 2021.
Knut
In 2006, Knut was one of the first polar bears born at the Berlin Zoo in Germany in 30 years. He captured the hearts of the world because he was hand-raised after his mother rejected him and his brother. Sadly, his brother died at just four days old. Knut lived to be 4 years old.
During his short life, he was an ambassador for his species and drew attention to the dangers of climate change. He also was a big celebrity at the zoo and increased attendance at the institution by 30%. This made 2007 its most profitable year ever. He inspired children’s books, toys, and media specials.
Diego
Diego, a Hood Island giant tortoise, helped save his species. It is believed he was born on Española Island in the Galápagos. He was captured and eventually housed at the San Diego Zoo. In 1976, there were only 15 Hood Island giant tortoise left and a breeding program was set up to save them.
Diego’s DNA was tested, and he was found to be a perfect match. He was sent to Santa Cruz Islands and fathered more than 900 tiny tortoises. Thanks to his work, there are now more than 2,000 of his kind in the world. He was retired from breeding and released back into the wild.
Paul
Paul, the octopus, could see into the future. He specialized in predicting German football (soccer) matches. He lived at the Sea Life Centre in Oberhausen, Germany. His keepers would give him two boxes with mussels in them decorated with the colors of the teams about to face off. Whatever box he picked would be considered his prediction for the outcome of the game. He had an 85.7% success rate. He died in 2010 at the age of 2 1/2, which is normal for an octopus.
Fiona
Before there was Moo Deng, there was Fiona. She’s a Nile hippopotamus born and raised at the Cincinnati Zoo. She was the first of her species to be born there in 75 years. Her name was inspired by the movie Shrek because her ears look like similar to the fictional ogre.
She was also the first of her kind to be seen on ultrasound imaging. Her six-week premature birth caused her to need special care such as a catheter and bottle feeding because she was too small to be able to nurse from her mother. She is now 7 years old and still an internet sensation.
Gemina
This special Rothschild’s giraffe lived with an ocean view in sunny Santa Barbara. Gemina was born at the San Diego Zoo but moved to Santa Barbara when she was a year old. When she turned 3, a deformity in her neck became noticeable. When she was full grown, her neck had a 90-degree bend between her C3 and C4 vertebrae.
This didn’t really seem to bother her at all. She lived a long life and taught the world that just because you look different doesn’t mean you can’t do great things. She died in 2008 at age 21.
